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Small vessel diseases (SVD) is an umbrella term including several entities affecting small arteries, arterioles, capillaries, and venules in the brain. One of the most relevant and prevalent SVDs is cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), whose pathological hallmark is the deposition of amyloid fragments in the walls of small cortical and leptomeningeal vessels. CAA frequently coexists with Alzheimer's Disease (AD), and both are associated with cerebrovascular events, cognitive impairment, and dementia. CAA and AD share pathophysiological, histopathological and neuroimaging issues. The venular involvement in both diseases has been neglected, although both animal models and human histopathological studies found a deposition of amyloid beta in cortical venules. This review aimed to summarize the available information about venular involvement in CAA, starting from the biological level with the putative pathomechanisms of cerebral damage, passing through the definition of the peculiar angioarchitecture of the human cortex with the functional organization and consequences of cortical arteriolar and venular occlusion, and ending to the hypothesized links between cortical venular involvement and the main neuroimaging markers of the disease.

Anemia is one of the most frequent diseases worldwide, affecting one-third of the general population. Anemia in general and in particular, iron-deficient anemia (IDA), has been associated to a higher risk of thrombotic manifestations, including ischemic stroke and cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), as well as systemic extra-cerebral arterial and venous thrombosis. Despite these data, anemia is seldom considered as an etiological factor of stroke. An individual case encompassing all known neurovascular and systemic arterial and venous thrombotic manifestations related to IDA is presented with the focus on clinical reasoning issues in the diagnostic pathways, starting from the neuroradiological signs. The main questions have been identified and addressed in a narrative review of the most relevant data in the literature from a pragmatic and clinical viewpoint. The presented case concerns a 46-year-old man admitted to the Stroke Unit because of acute ischemic stroke with multiple thrombi in large intracranial and extracranial vessels, multifocal ischemic lesions in several arterial territories and the concurrent finding of asymptomatic CVT, pulmonary embolism with lung infarction and aortic thrombosis. An extended diagnostic work-up excluded the main etiologies (arterial dissection, cardiac embolism, genetic and acquired prothrombotic disorders, such as cancer and antiphospholipid syndrome), except for a severe IDA, such as to require blood transfusions followed by anticoagulant therapy for the several thrombotic manifestations. Neuroimaging and systemic vascular findings have been analyzed, and the main issues proposed by the case in the diagnostic pathway have been identified and discussed in a pragmatic clinical road map reviewing the data provided by the literature. Conclusions: IDA is a common but treatable condition that, independently or synergically, may increase the risk of thrombotic events. The diagnostic and therapeutic approach has not yet been defined, and

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) is one of the major types of cerebral small vessel disease, and a leading cause of spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage and cognitive decline in elderly patients. Although increasingly detected, a number of aspects including the pathophysiology, the clinical and neuroradiological phenotype, and the disease course are still under investigation. The incomplete knowledge of the disease limits the implementation of evidence-based guidelines on patient’s clinical management and the development of treatments able to prevent or reduce disease progression. The SENECA (SEarchiNg biomarkErs of Cerebral Angiopathy) project is the first Italian multicenter cohort study aimed at better defining the disease natural history and identifying clinical and neuroradiological markers of disease progression. By a multidisciplinary approach and the collection of a large and well-phenotyped series and biorepository of CAA patients, the study is ultimately expected to improve the diagnosis and the knowledge of CAA pathophysiological mechanisms.

After a long history of failed clinical trials, we are currently experiencing an enthusiastic era for the treatment of amyloid-related neurodegenerative diseases. Phase1b data of aducanumab, a fully human antibody against Abeta42, is giving great promises and it is now moving directly into Phase3 in prodromal AD. Ponezumab, an antibody against Abeta40, has recently entered in Phase2 for CAA. Although the differences in terms of naturally history of these diseases and of drug-target engagement, increasing data are demonstrating that CAA and AD share different similarities that can perhaps mutually influence the design, safety, biomarkers profile and final outcomes interpretation of clinical trials

Importance Cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related inflammation (CAA-ri) is an important diagnosis to reach in clinical practice because many patients with the disease respond to immunosuppressive therapy. Reliable noninvasive diagnostic criteria for CAA-ri would allow some patients to avoid the risk of brain biopsy. OBJECTIVE To test the sensitivity and specificity of clinical and neuroimaging-based criteria for CAA-ri. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS We modified the previously proposed clinicoradiological criteria and retrospectively analyzed clinical medical records and magnetic resonance imaging fluid-attenuated inversion recovery and gradient-echo scans obtained from individuals with CAA-ri and noninflammatory CAA. At 2 referral centers between October 1, 1995, and May 31, 2013, and between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2011, participants included 17 individuals with pathologically confirmed CAA-ri and 37 control group members with pathologically confirmed noninflammatory CAA. The control group was further divided into those with past lobar intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) (n = 21) and those with cerebral microbleeds only and no history of ICH (n = 16). The dates of our analysis were September 1, 2012, to August 31, 2015. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The sensitivity and specificity of prespecified criteria for probable CAA-ri (requiring asymmetric white matter hyperintensities extending to the subcortical white matter) and possible CAA-ri (not requiring the white matter hyperintensities to be asymmetric). RESULTS The 17 patients in the CAA-ri group were a mean (SD) of 68 (8) years and 8 (47%) were women. In the CAA-ri group, 14 of 17 (82%)met the criteria for both probable and possible CAA-ri. In the control group having noninflammatory CAA with lobar ICH, 1 of 21 (5%) met the criteria for possible CAA-ri, and none met the criteria for probable CAA-ri. In the control group having noninflammatory CAA with no ICH, 11 of 16 (69%) met the criteria for possible CAA-ri

The Second Insubria Autumn School on Neuroimmune Pharmacology was held at the University of Insubria in Varese (Italy) in November 16th–20th 2015, under the auspices of the Society on NeuroImmune Pharmacology, the Italian Society of Pharmacology, and the Italian Association for Neuroimmunology. The School was dedicated to the repurposing of established drugs for novel indications, considering the enormous opportunities for drug repositioning provided by the prominent innovative and interdisciplinary approaches peculiar to neuroimmune pharmacology. More than 40 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows from 12 european universities, research institutes and hospitals attended the School, and lectures were given by 20 internationally acknowledged experts in the fields of basic and clinical neurosciences, immunology, and pharmacology. A poster session provided young researchers the opportunity to present their results, and the best poster was given the Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology Young Investigator Award.

Background. Cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related inflammation (CAA-ri) results from autoimmune response to beta-amyloid deposits in cerebral vessels. Its clinical course and complications have seldom been described in literature. Case Report. In a patient presenting with delirium and left hemiparesis the diagnosis of CAA-ri was supported by the finding of elevated anti-amyloid autoantibodies in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Steroid therapy produced significant improvements in clinical and investigational assessments, but after two months, it caused Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome. After steroid therapy discontinuation the patient presented a rapidly progressive dementia, Guillain-Barré syndrome, new cerebral ischemic lesions, and thrombosis of the right cephalic and subclavian veins that were treated with subcutaneous heparin. After a week the patient died because of brain hemorrhage. Conclusion. This case suggests caution in steroid therapy discontinuation and antithrombotic therapy administration in patients with CAA-ri. The CSF search of anti-amyloid autoantibodies could be helpful to support the diagnosis

Introduction: Cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related inflammation (CAA-ri) is a disease subtype characterized by rapidly progressive cognitive decline, seizures, headaches, T2-hyperintense MRI lesions, and neuropathologic evidence of CAA-associated vascular inflammation. CAA-ri is an important diagnosis to reach in clinical practice, as many patients respond to immunosuppressive therapy. Definitive diagnosis of CAA-ri generally requires brain biopsy, however, highlighting the importance of developing noninvasive diagnostic criteria. Objectives: To test the sensitivity and specificity of modified criteria (Table 1) for possible and probable CAA-ri in groups of subjects with histologically proven CAA-ri and non-CAA-ri. Methods: After refining previously proposed clinical- radiological criteria we retrospectively analyzed clinical charts and MRI FLAIR and gradient-echo scans obtained from 17 subjects with pathologically confirmed CAA-ri and 37 control subjects with pathologic diagnosis of non-inflammatory CAA. The control group was further divided into those with past intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) (n=21) and those with cerebral microbleeds (CMB) only and no history of ICH (n=16). Results: In the CAA-ri group 14/17 (82.4%) met criteria for both probable and possible CAA-ri. One (4.7%) of the subjects in the control CAA-ICH group (n=21) met the criteria for possible and none met criteria for probable CAA-ri. In the control CAA-no ICH group 1/16 (6.25%) and 11/16 (68.75%) met criteria for probable and possible CAA-ri respectively. This yields sensitivity and specificity of 82% and of 97.3% respectively for the probable criteria and sensitivity and specificity of 82% and 67.6% respectively for the possible criteria. Conclusions: Our data suggest that a reliable diagnosis of CAA-ri can be reached from basic clinical and radiographic information alone with good sensitivity and excellent specificity.

Introduction: Cerebral amyloid angiopathy-related inflammation (CAA-ri) is a disease subtype characterized by rapidly progressive cognitive decline, seizures, headaches, T2-hyperintense MRI lesions, and neuropathologic evidence of CAA-associated vascular inflammation. CAA-ri is an important diagnosis to reach in clinical practice, as many patients respond to immunosuppressive therapy. Definitive diagnosis of CAA-ri generally requires brain biopsy, however, highlighting the importance of developing noninvasive diagnostic criteria. Objectives: To test the sensitivity and specificity of modified criteria (Table 1) for possible and probable CAA-ri in groups of subjects with histologically proven CAA-ri and non-CAA-ri. Methods: After refining previously proposed clinical- radiological criteria we retrospectively analyzed clinical charts and MRI FLAIR and gradient-echo scans obtained from 17 subjects with pathologically confirmed CAA-ri and 37 control subjects with pathologic diagnosis of non-inflammatory CAA. The control group was further divided into those with past intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) (n=21) and those with cerebral microbleeds (CMB) only and no history of ICH (n=16). Results: In the CAA-ri group 14/17 (82.4%) met criteria for both probable and possible CAA-ri. One (4.7%) of the subjects in the control CAA-ICH group (n=21) met the criteria for possible and none met criteria for probable CAA-ri. In the control CAA-no ICH group 1/16 (6.25%) and 11/16 (68.75%) met criteria for probable and possible CAA-ri respectively. This yields sensitivity and specificity of 82% and of 97.3% respectively for the probable criteria and sensitivity and specificity of 82% and 67.6% respectively for the possible criteria. Conclusions: Our data suggest that a reliable diagnosis of CAA-ri can be reached from basic clinical and radiographic information alone with good sensitivity and excellent specificity.

The presence of Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) DNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and peripheral blood (PB) samples collected from 55 patients with clinical and radiologically-active relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and 51 subjects with other neurological diseases was determined using standardized commercially available kits for viral nucleic acid extraction and quantitative EBV DNA detection. Both cell-free and cell-associated CSF and PB fractions were analyzed, to distinguish latent from lytic EBV infection. EBV DNA was detected in 5.5% and 18.2% of cell-free and cell-associated CSF fractions of patients with RRMS as compared to 7.8% and 7.8% of controls; plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) positivity rates were 7.3% and 47.3% versus 5.8% and 31.4%, respectively. No significant difference in median EBV viral loads of positive samples was found between RRMS and control patients in all tested samples. Absence of statistically significant differences in EBV positivity rates between RRMS and control patients, despite the use of highly sensitive standardized methods, points to the lack of association between EBV and MS disease activity.

Objectives. Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy-related inflammation (CAA-ri) is a rare meningoencephalitis characterized by vasogenic edema and multiple cortical/subcortical microbleeds, shearing several aspects with the recently defined Amyloid-Related Imaging Abnormalities (ARIA) occurring in Alzheimer's disease (AD) passive immunization therapies. Here, we investigated the specific role of autologous anti-AÎ2 antibodies and Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor (TFPI) in order to identify novel biomarkers for ARIA. Methods. By a multicenter case-control study in 100 subjects, using a novel ultra-sensitive technique (patent application pending), we evaluated the anti-AÎ2 autoantibodies and TFPI, as a marker of cerebrovascular impairment, in the CSF of CAA-ri, CAA, AD, MS and controls. Levels of circulating AÎ240 (cAÎ240), cAÎ242, tau, P-181 tau and APOE4 genotype were also investigated. Results. We demonstrated a direct involvement of anti-AÎ2 autoantibodies during the occurrence of ARIA, showing that their concentration is specifically increased during the acute phase of CAA-ri (apCAA-ri) and progressively reduced with clinical and radiological remission. Moreover, a strong correlation with the increased mobilization of cAÎ240 and cAÎ242 during apCAA-ri was shown, followed by their return to control levels and reduced tau and P-181 tau after remission. A parallel increase of the endothelial impairment marker TFPI was also confirmed both in AD and apCAA-ri, in particular in those patients carrying the APOE4 allele . Conclusions. Our data strongly support the hypothesis that the pathogenesis of CAA-ri is mediated by a selective autoimmune reaction against cerebro-vascular AÎ2, directly related to autoantibodies concentration and cAÎ2 overloading. The parallel increase of TFPI during apCAA-ri may finally allows to speculate that ARIA is a temporary but necessary event preceding the downstream beneficial Aß-clearance effects of disease modifying therapies (DMTs), fur

Memory loss is one of the hallmark symptoms of Alzheimer's disease (AD). It has been proposed that soluble amyloid-beta (Abeta) oligomers acutely impair neuronal function and thereby memory. We here report that natural Abeta oligomers acutely impair contextual fear memory in mice. A natural Abeta oligomer solution containing Abeta monomers, dimers, trimers, and tetramers was derived from the conditioned medium of 7PA2 cells, a cell line that expresses human amyloid precursor protein containing the Val717Phe familial AD mutation. As a control we used 7PA2 conditioned medium from which Abeta oligomers were removed through immunodepletion. Separate groups of mice were injected with Abeta and control solutions through a cannula into the lateral brain ventricle, and subjected to fear conditioning using two tone-shock pairings. One day after fear conditioning, mice were tested for contextual fear memory and tone fear memory in separate retrieval trials. Three experiments were performed. For experiment 1, mice were injected three times: 1 hour before and 3 hours after fear conditioning, and 1 hour before context retrieval. For experiments 2 and 3, mice were injected a single time at 1 hour and 2 hours before fear conditioning respectively. In all three experiments there was no effect on tone fear memory. Injection of Abeta 1 hour before fear conditioning, but not 2 hours before fear conditioning, impaired the formation of a contextual fear memory. In future studies, the acute effect of natural Abeta oligomers on contextual fear memory can be used to identify potential mechanisms and treatments of AD associated memory loss

We investigated the possible involvement of vascular damage in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), by assessment of plasma levels of tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI), a serine protease inhibitor induced by endothelial injury, and homocysteine (Hcy), a known risk factor for cerebrovascular disorders, folate levels were also measured. 110 probable AD, 38 mild cognitive impairment, 31 patients affected by idiopathic Parkinson's disease (without dementia) and 100 healthy controls, who displayed no vascular disorders were enrolled. TFPI and Hcy were significantly higher in AD patients with respect to other groups. The levels of TFPI and Hcy were positively correlated in hyperhomocysteinemic AD and mild cognitive impairment subjects, and were negatively correlated with folate levels. Our findings suggest that an impairment of endothelial function associated with high Hcy levels may occur in AD patients, despite the absence of manifest cerebrovascular lesions. Therefore, TFPI may represent a candidate marker of endothelial damage in AD and might be used for the identification and monitoring of patients that would benefit from folate supplementation treatment.

The acute effects of simvastatin lactone (lipophilic) and simvastatin acid (hydrophilic) on transient focal ischemia were assessed using the isolated guinea pig brain maintained in vitro by arterial perfusion. This new model of cerebral ischemia allows the assessment of the very early phase of the ischemic process, with the functional preservation of the vascular and neuronal compartments and the blood-brain barrier (bbb). The middle cerebral artery was transiently tied for 30 min followed by reperfusion for 60 min. Statins (nanomolar doses) were administered by intravascular continuous infusion starting 60 min before ischemia induction. Brain cortical activity and arterial vascular tone were continuously recorded. At the end of the experiment immunoreactivity for microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP-2), expression of survival kinases (ERK and Akt) and total anti-oxidant capacity were assayed. Brains treated with simvastatin lactone showed i) reduced amplitude and delayed onset of ischemic depressions, ii) preservation of MAP-2 immunoreactivity, iii) activation of ERK signaling in the ischemic hemisphere and iv) increase in whole-brain anti-oxidant capacity. Treatment with the bbb-impermeable simvastatin acid was ineffective on the above-mentioned parameters. Vascular resistance recordings and Akt signaling were unchanged by any statin treatment. Our findings suggest that intravascular-delivered simvastatin exerts an acute lipophilicity-dependent protective effect in the early phase of cerebral ischemia.

Objective and subjects: To examine in vivo levels of BAFF (B-cell activating factor of the tumor necrosis factor family) and APRIL (a proliferation-inducing ligand) in both the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum of 30 naïve MS patients and 79 subjects affected by acute or chronic inflammatory or non-inflammatory neurological diseases. Design: Case-control study. Results: No difference among groups was evidenced in serum BAFF or APRIL levels. By contrast, CSF levels of BAFF in MS (mean 144.3 pg/ml ± 141.2), although not significantly different from those observed in NIND (164.2 pg/ml ± 92.0), acute peripheral OIND (243.1 pg/ml ± 139.0) or chronic OIND (240.2 pg/ml ± 122.5), were significantly higher in acute central OIND patients (1274.0 pg/ml ± 803.8; p < 0.001 vs. all groups). Similarly, CSF APRIL levels in MS (1541.0 pg/ml ± 1071.0), NIND (2629.0 pg/ml ± 1669.0), acute peripheral OIND (2834.0 pg/ml ± 1118.) or chronic OIND (2764.0 pg/ml ± 659.7) were not significantly different, while they were significantly higher in acute central OIND (6218.0 pg/ml ± 3790.0; p < 0.001 vs. MS and NIND; and p < 0.05 vs. acute peripheral OIND). Conclusions: Our results strongly suggest that further investigation is warranted to elucidate the role of BAFF and APRIL in MS and that serum levels of BAFF and APRIL do not reflect CSF levels.